Wall Street absorbed another stream of bad economic readings Wednesday, turning modestly higher as investors shuttled between pessimism about a protracted recession and hopes that the nation might start to see some relief soon.

Retailers who saw Thanksgiving holiday sales drop off as the weekend progressed stepped up online promotions on the day known as "Cyber Monday" to try to get consumers tired of the crowds at stores to keep shopping.

Online spending for October grew at the slowest pace since at least 2001, an Internet research company said Tuesday the latest evidence that Web shopping is being dragged down by the deteriorating economy.

Online spending for October grew at the slowest pace since at least 2001, an Internet research company said Tuesday -- the latest evidence that Web shopping is being dragged down by the deteriorating economy.

Yahoo co-founder Jerry Yang is stepping down as chief executive, ending a rocky reign marked by his refusal to sell the Internet company to Microsoft for $47.5 billion more than triple Yahoo's current market value.